28Sep15

Taliban storms Kunduz city

The Taliban assaulted the northern provincial capital of Kunduz from three
directions and seized control of areas in the city. Unconfirmed reports from
residents and Taliban fighters inside Kunduz indicate that Afghan forces have
been driven out of the city and the jihadist group is in full control.

According to the BBC, hundreds of Taliban fighters launched their offensive
today from three districts: Imam Sahib to the north, Khanabad from the
southeast, and Chardara from the southwest. All three districts are thought to
be under Taliban control.

The Taliban confirmed that it launched a three-pronged assault on Kunduz
city. "The operations have commenced on the city center from 3 directions
with Mujahideen quickly taking enemy positions and the enemy is retreating
from their positions," according to an initial statement that was posted on
Voice of Jihad.

The Taliban later stated that its fighters have "reached the main city
intersection, are targeting the governors [sic] compound and clearing the
small remaining pockets from enemy presence."

Afghan security officials have denied that the Taliban is in control of the city
and have stated that the fighting was largely confined to the outskirts of the
provincial capital.

But reports from the Afghan media, as well as Taliban fighters and residents
inside the city, indicate that parts if not all of the city are now under the
jihadist group's control.

According to TOLONews, "Taliban insurgents have taken control of Kunduz
city's provincial council building and the local High Peace Council offices."

Ehsanullah Ehsan, a stabilization manager at the international development
agency DAI who is based in Kunduz, has said that the Taliban has seized the
city and Afghan National Security Forces [ANSF] have retreated.

"Kunduz city is completely with taliban ANSF are out," Ehsan tweeted. "[T]he
city is completely with taliban now, taliban walking inside streets, i am
trapped at home."

Ehsan posted photographs purportedly showing Taliban fighters walking the
streets of Kunduz and prisoners who have been freed from the city's main jail.

Kunduz province has been hotly contested since the Taliban and its allies
launched an offensive to seize control of the province at the end of April. The
districts of Imam Sahib, Aliabad, and Qala-i-Zal were overrun in the initial
assault, while Chardara and Dasht-i-Archi fell in mid-June. Khanabad fell
under Taliban control the same day that Kunduz fell. The status of the six
districts is unclear, but the Taliban is still thought to be in control of Imam
Sahib, Aliabad, Chardara, Khanabad, and Dasht-i-Archi.

The Taliban and allied jihadist groups based in Kunduz have been flexing their
muscles in the province in recent weeks. In August, hundreds of fighters from
the Taliban and the allied Islamic Jihad Union massed in the open, in daylight,
to swear allegiance to Mullah Akhtar Mohammad Mansour, the new emir of
the Taliban. Last week, the Islamic Jihad Union claimed it controlled large
areas of the border with Tajikistan and a border crossing from Kunduz into the
northern Afghan neighbor.

The loss of Kunduz city, if confirmed, would be a major blow to the Afghan
government and military, which have struggled to maintain security after US
and NATO forces have drawn down to a token presence. Kunduz city would
be the first provincial capital to fall to the Taliban.

Additionally, the fall of Kunduz would invalidate the entire US "surge" strategy
from 2009 to 2012. The US military focused its efforts on the southern Afghan
provinces of Helmand and Kandahar, claiming that these provinces were the
key to breaking the Taliban. Little attention was given to other areas of
Afghanistan, including the northern provinces, where the Taliban has
expended considerable effort in fighting the military and government. Today,
the Taliban is gaining ground in northern, central, eastern and southern
Afghanistan, with dozens of districts falling under the jihadist group's control
over the past year.

[Source: By Bill Roggio, The Long War Journal, NJ, 28Sep15]

This document has been published on 07Oct15 by the Equipo Nizkor and Derechos Human Rights. In accordance with
Title 17 U.S.C. Section 107, this material is distributed without profit to those who have expressed a
prior interest in receiving the included information for research and educational
purposes.